In Sub-Saharan Africa, HIV has caused TB incidence to triple since the 1990s and in some countries 80% of TB patients are co-infected with HIV.

“ TB is preventable, treatable and curable yet it kills close to two million people a year ”

Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams

In 2007, worldwide there were an estimated 1.37 million new cases of TB among HIV-infected people and 456,000 deaths.

The situation is made more urgent by increasing rates of drug-resistant TB in areas with a high prevalence of HIV.

Again, in 2007, an estimated 500,000 people had multidrug-resistant TB, but less than 1% of them were receiving treatments meeting WHO's recommended standards.

Dr Margaret Chan, Director-General of WHO, said: "These findings point to an urgent need to find, prevent and treat TB in people living with HIV and to test for HIV in all patients with TB.

"Countries can only do that through stronger collaborative programmes and stronger health systems that address both diseases."

Another pressure is financing the measures in the current, unstable economic climate.

“ Now is the time to scale-up financing for effective interventions ”

Dr Michel Kazatchkine of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria

The UK Coalition to Stop TB is urging Gordon Brown and world leaders attending the forthcoming G20 meeting to deliver on their funding pledges to stop TB and to scale up a coordinated and coherent response to TB-HIV.

It estimates that an investment of US$14 billion would reduce TB deaths in people living with HIV by 80-90%.

Dr Michel Kazatchkine, executive director of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, said: "The financial crisis must not derail the implementation of the Global Plan to Stop TB.

"Now is the time to scale-up financing for effective interventions for the prevention, treatment and care of TB worldwide."

The release of WHO's Global TB Control report coincides with World TB Day.

Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams said: "TB is preventable, treatable and curable yet it kills close to two million people a year.

"World TB Day emphasises the need for global health efforts to provide adequate care for the millions worldwide affected by HIV and related illnesses such as TB."

In the UK cases of TB have increased by 2% from 8,496 cases reported in 2007 to 8,679 in 2008 according to the Health Protection Agency.

London continues to have the most cases with 3,415 new diagnoses reported in 2008 which is 39% of the total for the UK and an increase of 2% on 2007.

Global7 Science: the new Millennial Renaissance Vision for the GlobeOur Passion is to reach our Individual and Collective Potential

Dear Patriotic Global Citizens:

It is becoming clear that high intake of red and processed meat that is cooked at high temperatures is highly toxic to our system producing cancer and high risk heart diseaes.

The challenge is changing dietary habits of millions of people used to pork, hambruger and the like which are highly toxic to the body.

Nutrition and lifestyle in general are the maing challenges for optimum health. We need to change fast what we eat and how often and how much we eat.

In the end what we put into our system be it food, drinks and smokes is what gets to our cells and overall health.

The following reports indicate we need to change our feeding habits fast. Stay with vegetables and non animal proteins and the occassional healthy animal products like Salmon will just do the trick.

Dr BDeath link to too much red meat

Scientists have produced new evidence suggesting eating lots of red and processed meat damages health.

They found big meat eaters had a raised risk of death from all causes over a 10-year period.

In contrast, a higher intake of white meat was associated with a slightly reduced risk of death over the same period.

The US study, featured in Archives of Internal Medicine, was based on more than 500,000 people.

“ The need is for a major reduction in total meat intake ”

Dr Barry Popkin

University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

The researchers, from The US National Cancer Institute, found those whose diet contained the highest proportion of red or processed meat had a higher overall risk of death, and specifically a higher risk of cancer and heart disease than those who ate the least.

People eating the most meat were eating about 160g of red or processed meat per day - approximately a 6oz steak.

Those who ate the least were only getting about 25g per day - approximately a small rasher of bacon.

Conversely, those who ate the highest proportion of white meat had a lower risk of overall death, and a lower risk of fatal cancer or heart disease than those who ate the lowest proportion.

The researchers calculated that 11% of deaths in men and 16% of deaths in women during the study period could have been prevented if people had decreased their red meat consumption to the level of those in the lowest intake group.

Cancer compounds

The researchers said cancer-causing compounds were formed during high-temperature cooking of meat.

“ No one's saying that people should avoid bacon or burgers completely, but evidence tells us that cutting down on these foods can reduce the risk of dying from cancer and other diseases ”

Ed Yong Cancer Research UK

Meat is a major source of saturated fat, which has been associated with breast and colorectal cancer. In addition, lower meat intake has been linked to a reduction in risk factors for heart disease, including lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

The latest study adds to a growing body of research linking high red and processed meat consumption to an increased risk of ill health.

Recent UK research found one in ten people has tried to cut down on processed meats, such as bacon, in the wake of previous reports linking them to cancer.

Writing in the same journal, Dr Barry Popkin of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, stressed there were health benefits to eating some red meat.

But he added: "The need is for a major reduction in total meat intake, an even larger reduction in processed meat and other highly processed and salted animal source food products and a reduction in total saturated fat."

Dr Mark Wahlqvist, a nutrition expert from Australia's Monash University, said eating small amounts of red meat - around 30g a day - provided a good source of key nutrients.

He said: "Fresh, lean red meat of these amounts is likely to be of more benefit than harm."

Ed Yong, of the charity Cancer Research UK, said two large studies had now linked eating lots of red or processed meat to some cancers.

"No one's saying that people should avoid bacon or burgers completely, but evidence from large studies like this tells us that cutting down on these foods can reduce the risk of dying from cancer and other diseases."

Fundamental challenge of our time. The recent pre-occupation with the war on terror and Global Financial Crisis and persistent insecurity that is being generated in the Horn and Middle East and around the globe is the most fundamental challenge of our time.

Terrorizing the gateway to global commerce. The Horn is the gateway to commerce, diplomacy and cultural connection of the West and East. The shipping lanes of the Red Sea Coast have been the link of the Eastern, Western civilizations for generations. The hominid remain finds of “Lucy and Selam” are living testimony of the cultural heritage of the region to the world.

The Center of human and cultural diversity in crisis. The Horn is the reservoir of the human and cultural diversity of the world where the classical Judaic, Christian and Muslim cultures meet the Global 21st Century Millennium challenges.

The epicenter of the Horn is Addis Ababa which is the hot seat of an active diplomatic community and international partnerships for peace and prosperity and the world and especially Africa cannot afford suicide bombers or street smart hooligans to create havoc in the region perpetually under any pretext be it religious, ethnic and economic crisis. Surely, Pre-emptive security, military and diplomatic action is critically needed to make security and prosperity the real agenda of our time.

The upcoming G20 Conference in London is designed to address the global economic crisis but fails to look at the root cause of all global insecurity. The economic terrorists are no different than the social and political terrorists. The stories of Bernstein Ma doff, AIG and other high risk alternative hedge fund and shady banking dealers are not different from the Taliban and AlQaeda except the suit they wear and the office and bush environment they operate on. They are all criminals trying their very best not be caught but creating bubbles of insecurity and terror all around them.

Managing risk and insecurity. The process of managing risk and insecurity is all the same. Create an environment of transparency and accountability and Good Practice policies that need to be prioritized on a daily and weekly basis with appropriate productivity reports and performance evaluations.

Imagine paying bonuses for failed executives who sank their respective companies and giving political and diplomatic recognition for known terrorists is beyond any explanation. Our response should be relevant and appropriate all the time. Remember: the terrorists and economic busters all take great risks at the expense of the majority public who are not able to make them accountable.

Lessons from the past. Insecurity both at personal and community as well as global level has become a common phenomenon. In the past we had to deal with social and economic insecurity from different perspective.

This has taken different forms at different times in history. The most recent ones are the insecurity created by the Cold War and Colonialism as well as the religious wars of Crusades and Jihad which are evolving into another challenge of out time. We are now observing the same elements of insecurity and terror evolving in our midst today.

The Medical Science world has a process of problem identification and solution creation by looking at what is referred to cause and effect or to use the scientific terms: ethiogensis, pathogenesis and diagnosis, therapeutics and prophylaxis as well as prognosis while looking at cause, process, identification, and treatment protocols and then looking at expected outcome of the process.

The current world insecurity and terror demands all the resources at our disposal to understand the cause, process and impact as well as the prospect into the future.

Ethiogensis. The cause of the world insecurity is not just disparity in wealth and resources but also the challenges of globalization and its capacity to galvanize resources at its disposal across continents and cultures without any transparency and accountability. Good Governance should be the mantra every where with appropriate tools of its implementation. The fear of this rather successful enterprise is pushing lots of societies to look for alternatives.

Lessons from totalitarian Communism and Uncontrolled Capitalism are the same. The communists tried systematic re-organization and failed. Only the Chinese are fast learning to adopt it. Yesterdays Communist Colonel Hussein Tahir had changed himself to a ruthless war-lord which now converting himself into a Mad Sheikh or Militant Mullah of the Horn calling on Jihad both at his fellow Somalis and Ethiopians every other day.

The cause is a mad man who needs to see the Horn’s Court of Justice if not that of Africa. He and his lieutenants are the cause of the current crisis in the Horn. The Toxic Capitalists like hedge fund managers, the Maddof-ponzi scheme operators and AIG type criminals all flourished because of no transparency and accountability. They found a Black Hole in the legal and financial system which they exploited to its maximum that generated the current crisis. Absolute Economic Power corrupts absolutely!

Pathogenesis. As much as globalization can be beneficial it is also highly wasteful and rather crude in the way it treats the losers. The market is friendly to the winners but rather crude in the way it treats those who do not succeed in managing it. So, the win-lose environment forces the losers to fight back and creating insecurity is one way of coming back at the market and global forces.

In short, the Market needs to be tamed into win-win partnership with all stakeholders such that the less efficient stakeholders can be accommodated in the big picture. The losers find it easy to fight in a defeatist approach rather than in coming back at it in a creative enterprising way. The mad Communist Colonel is fermenting a disgruntled population from a failed state and society into a time bomb for the region.

Diagnosis. Most of today’s Jihadists and fundamentalists or extremist as some refer to them are those who see their way of life being challenged irreversibly and do not want to take it lying down, nor respond to it in a creative way but rather want to fight all the way to their grave. The example of the recent extremist in Somalia declaring Jihad at any opportunity against an enemy that does not exist except in their defeated mind is a case in point. The diagnosis needs to be both realistic and therapeutic.

The real solution is to remove the cancer before it metastasizes every where, in this instance the global economic and social insecurity. Then bring those economic and political cirminas and their respective lieutenants to justice where ever it is found such the African Court of Justice for Africans the Middle East Jihadists in the Middle East and their global collaborators at the Hague. The same analogy can be used for the Market Failure, by the Madoff-Ponzi Scheme operators who continue to reward poor performers and losers even with bail out money as we recently witnessed in the AIG fiasco and others before. It.

Therapeutics. The remedy to the challenge is to involve them in creative partnership that allows them to vent their perspective without allowing them to galvanize resources of destruction by calling on the defeatists from all over the world as it is likely to happen in the current Italianization of the Horn.The suggestion of some gullible ones like the recent series of articles in Ethimedia.com is just fanning the blaze and submitting to terror without even put up any resistance. The most successful treatment is to remove the bad apples or cancerous elements of our societies from polluting the clean and healthy elements of our lives.

Creating opportunities for all! The Horn Crisis Group is encouraging defeat instead of giving creative responses by suggesting acquiescing instead of challenge the mad Communist Mullahs who are calling Jihad each time they take the euphoric Chat or Quat of the region which is mainly produced in Ethiopian highlands. Creating an opportunity for all Somalis of the region to communicate and develop an egalitarian system of good governance is key and the Transitional Government needs to be enabled and supported by all concerned.

Prognosis. This is not the first time that the horn had serious challenges to its survival. Environmental and man made crisis has been in effect its daily menu of challenges for the past 30 years. Only the players are changing, not the cause and effect. Fortunately, the global community has invested a lot in the past managing both the environmental and man made crisis and have institutions in place both at African, UN and Global level.

The real challenge is to put these institutions to work and a UN sponsored Security Council and African Union involvement is a must. We cannot ignore the huge elephant in the living room. Face reality and bring Colonel Hussein Tahir and his militant to the Court of justice now. Any delay will empower the sleeping terrorist of the region to resurface again. It is now or never!

Action Plan. First things First! Defend the local vulnerable people of the Horn first and then talk about Good Governance! And Millennium Development Goals. The G20 Global Economic Crisis Conference can only succeed if we treat the root cause of the problem, i.e greed, lack of transparency and accountability and most importantly by making the criminals pay and not reward them with diplomatic and economic recognitions and bonuses! We need to change direction in our value system and the way we treat challenges and opportunities. The secret is how to change every challenge into opportunities.

The challenge is “What is your response and mine is the real question!

The richest 2 percent of adults still owns more than half of the world's household wealth, perpetuating a yawning global gap between rich and poor, according to research published Tuesday.

The report from the Helsinki-based World Institute for Development Economics Research shows that in 2000 the richest 1 percent of adults -- most of whom live in Europe or the United States -- owned 40 percent of global assets. The richest 10 percent of adults accounted for 85 percent of assets, the report said.

By contrast, the bottom 50 percent of the world's adult population owned barely 1 percent of the world's wealth.

''Income inequality has been rising for the past 20 to 25 years, and we think that is true for inequality in the distribution of wealth,'' said James Davies, professor of economics at the University of Western Ontario, one of the report's authors. The gulf between rich and poor nations has long concerned politicians and economists, who say it is one of the biggest obstacles to development.

But Davies said there are some hopeful signs: China and India, which are developing rapidly, are gaining wealth and in countries like Bangladesh, the spread of micro-credit institutions is helping people to increase their personal wealth, he said. In other countries, land registration programs allow the poor to own land for the first time, he said.

According to the report, individual assets of $2,200 placed an adult in the top half of the world's wealth distribution in 2000.

Those in the richest 10 percent of adults had assets of $61,000 or more while those in the top 1 percent -- who now number 37 million -- had at least $500,000. Household wealth in 2000 was valued at $125 trillion, equivalent to roughly three times the value of total global production, or to $20,500 per person, the report said.

Average wealth in the United States amounted to $144,000 per person in the year 2000, and $181,000 in Japan, it said.

In India, the figure was just $1,100 and in Indonesia, per ca pita wealth was $1,400. Wealth is concentrated in North America, Europe and high-income Asia-Pacific countries, with nearly 90 percent, the report said.

AP Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

1.1 Visionary leadership for win-win synergistic partnerships for success. Dr Habte-Jesus has a well developed and proven leadership skills built on strategic visioning, effective communication, efficient implementation strategies and strong team-building efforts to realize a win-win synergistic partnership for success.

1.3 Quality Improvement & Patient Safety leadership. As Corporate Director for Professional Services and Quality Improvement for over 12 home health agencies scattered through out the United States: (California, Colorado, District of Columbia, Pennsylvania and Virginia,) Dr Habte-Jesus has promoted all aspects of quality improvement and patient safety both within Human Touch Group of HHAs and externally. As the key person in charge of Quality Improvement and Audit, Dr Habte-Jesus has initiated and promoted all the professional accreditation processes with the Joint Commission and the respective state and District health regulatory authorities. Dr Habte-Jesus has competent knowledge and experience in clinical medicine, public health and health services management with a deep knowledge and expertise in the area of Quality management and organizational re-structuring to promote change in compliance with changing patient and environment of care needs. He has well developed expertise in systems and processes, re-design, human factors engineering, the various process improvement methodologies and related activities of quality improvement, risk assessment, option appraisal and decision making. He has developed a unique CORT Analysis package that deals with Organizational Challenges, Opportunities, Risks and Threat Analysis supported with Option Appraisal system that considers Nine series of Options and Alternatives while making potentially risky decisions in volatile and high security challenge environment.

1.4 Organizational leadership, design and re-engineering. Dr Habte-Jesus has extensive organizational design, re-engineering expertise with well developed tools and managerial ability to collaboratively plan, organize, and direct the activities of others. As Chair of the Governing Board of Human Touch and the Professional Advisory Body, Dr Habte-Jesus, has well developed interpersonal skills to interact effectively with organizational leadership, Board members, government officials, clinical and managerial leaders in health care organizations, and others within and outside the organization in the United States. He has excellent written and verbal communication skills necessary to effectively present information and ideas effectively in articles, proposals, position papers, and presentations. .

1.6 Multicultural Community empowerment. He has well developed expertise in multicultural community empowerment in health and human services as well as the development and promotion of small businesses and non profit organizations that empower community leadership. He has competent written and spoken communication skills with extensive experience in results/performance oriented management, qualitative and quantitative research, business development/management, with excellent interpersonal and organizational skills supported with expertise in organizational leadership, clinical and epidemiological research, strategic marketing, fund raising, health promotion, teaching and multicultural multimedia hosting & comprehensive health promotion radio and television programming and broadcasting experience.

1.5 Practical leadership and training experience. He has proven track record of leadership supported by highly developed organizational and interpersonal skills and training expertise in the area of good governance, win-win synergistic partnerships, health and human services with policy and program development, epidemiology, evaluation and participatory strategic planning and management expertise in health, education, human resources, youth development, mental health, mental retardation, and tropical medicine and infectious diseases, home health hospice services as well as public health prevention services.

1.6 Excellent track record of leadership. He is visionary, highly driven, detail and results oriented, self-motivated, team player and highly inspired to solve problems in the short and long term. He believes in developing win-win synergistic partnership among multicultural communities via business enterprises. He has worked as executive officer, director and senior manager with several health and human service institutions in Africa, Asia, Europe and here in North America. His summary experience and additional areas of expertise include:

 Broadcasting & Multi-Media Expertise. Excellent skills in vision, voice and data presentation using television, radio and print media: program development, marketing and production and broadcasting. He is fluent in English, Amharic, and Oromifa languages with working knowledge of French, Arabic, Hindi and Tigrinya. Research Interests. The role of Multi-media in changing individual and group behavior, Corporate Governance; Global Climate Change, Managing Change, Health Promotion and Disease Prevention; Innovative Enterprise Promotion, Security, Peace and Prosperity; Fair and Free Market System for sustainable development and prosperity

II. EDUCATIONAL/RESEARCH AND ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

 2.1 Academic Merit Scholarship: Master of Public Health. Master of Public health for medical doctors (1986); International Merit Scholarship with special commendation for research, University of Leeds, School of Public Health, United Kingdom, Great Britain. Concentration in epidemiology, health services research, management sciences population, and nutrition, mother and child health with a focus on international medicine and infectious diseases.

 2.2 Academic Merit Scholarship: Medical Doctor. (1983) General medicine and surgery training with specialty in public health and child development and survival, Christian Medical College and Hospital, Vellore, South India, University of Madras.

 2.3 Awards: Distinction for Dissertation. “Evaluation of Mother and Child Health Services in Developing and Developed Countries with a Retrospective Infant and Perinatal Morbidity and Mortality Studies.” September 1986.

 1.1 Responsibilities. Lead the development and expansion of Home Health Care, Home Hospice and Wellness and Rehabilitation Center in the Metropolitan Washington DC area, California, Colorado, Pennsylvania and Virginia states managing 12 Home Health Care Agencies. Lead in the need and risk assessment research, development of quality improvement protocol and strategic business development for the expansion and productivity of staff by developing management training and supervision of staff in establishing the centers. Developed a strategy for professional human resource development that included staff recruitment, retention, performance evaluation and promotion. Provide leadership in Continuous Quality Improvement protocol and compliance with the Joint Commission on the Accreditation of Health Care Organizations protocol as well as federal and state standards by developing qualitative and quantitative tools for measuring performance and results.

 1.2 Achievements. Developed a series of Nine thriving Home Health Care agencies in the Metropolitan Washington DC, Denver Colorado and Allentown, Pennsylvania in eastern and central parts of the USA. . Made the appropriate risk assessment for acquisition, business development and prepared the necessary certification and accreditation documents with appropriate staff recruitment, training and performance management tools and quality assurance protocol.

 Re-organized and centralized the management, marketing, intake and billing process as well as the Continuous Quality Improvement Protocol of the different organizations under one roof and developed protocols, strategies and templates for growth and expansion Organized Organizational Policy and Procedure with all the human resources and clinical as well as management information and marketing strategies. Developed the Joint Commission Accreditation Strategy and Implemented all the leadership standards including Infection Control Policy and Procedure and trained skilled professionals on how to deal with infections such as MRSA (Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus) infections in the home care setting. Accessing health information systems such as Med soft, Visitrack and Scan health (HomeSolutions.net) soft wares for managing patient information.

 2.2. Achievement. Organized and set up a functioning HIV Primary Medial Care System with appropriate secondary and tertiary referral systems. Developed and submitted Certificate of Need for Primary Medical Care Developed a business proposal for HRSA Capacity Building Grant, developed organizational network for improved governance for board development, MIS and financial accounting system that synchronizes with clinical care protocol, medical records, billing and continuous quality improvement protocol for Primary HIV Care (Prevention, Early Intervention, Therapy and Rehabilitation, etc).

 3.2. Accomplishments. Undertook a comprehensive needs assessment and SWOT analysis that looks at the strength, weakness, and opportunities and threats both at internal and external environments. Developed an extensive five years Human Care Agreement for Residential and Respite Services with appropriate budget and negotiated with the Government of the District of Columbia, DHS/Mental Retardation/Developmental Disabilities Administration. Directed a team of professionals to ensure a highly organized services that allowed the re-certification of six group homes with appropriate compliment of health and human services for ICFMR facilities. Prepared regular monthly training with an up-to-date training manual to professionals on a holistic approach in improving the safety and well being of consumers with mental health and mental retardation challenges.

 4.1. Responsibilities. Responsible for strategic marketing, business development and organization of the marketing and business development of a health and human services agency providing home health care services to vulnerable communities who cannot access primary and secondary care services due to physical limitations. Initiated and developed free standing home health care, home hospice and wellness and rehabilitation outpatient centers in the Metropolitan Washington DC area.

 4.2. Achievements. Undertook a comprehensive needs assessment and proposal development towards improving the internal and external market share of the agency towards establishing a strong presence in the Northern Virginia and Washington DC area. Developed successful proposals and presentations for a Certificate of Need Application for Home Health Care, Home Hospice Care and Capitol Wellness and Rehabilitation Centers in the Metropolitan Washington DC area. and made several contacts that yielded profitable contracts with health providers, insurance agencies such as Aetna, Care First, Blue Cross Blue Shield, MAMSI, Options, National Capital Health Care and other agencies.

1. Habte-Jesus, Belai et.al: Evaluation of Mother and Child Health Services in Developing and Developed Countries- Evaluating the Global Burden of Childhood Morbidity and Mortality with Perinatal Mortality Studies on work done between 1977-1986, University of Leeds, United Kingdom, Great Britain., September 1986.

4. Habte-Jesus, Belai: Presenter at the National Council for International Health 24th Annual Conference: The impact of HIV on future work force- Building Strategic Alliances, Washington, DC. July 1997.

5. Habte-Jesus, Belai: Presenter “Education for Empowerment in the 21st Century Development” at African Institute for Education and Development Inc, July 1996

6. Habte-Jesus, Belai: Letter of Advocacy to Bill Clinton, President of the United States regarding US Africa Policy: Re: Pre-empting the Impending Rwanda Genocide: July 1997.

11. Habte-Jesus, et. al: Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for Children, A collaboration Program of the DC Linkage and Tracking System, Office of Maternal and Child Health Systems Development Initiative and the American Academy of Pediatrics: Accessing a “Primary Health Care Home through Case Management, May 1994.

12. Habte-Jesus, et. al: Parenting Education as a foundation for prevention and early intervention of future PVO Child Survival Program, December 1996.

14. Habte-Jesus, Belai. A holistic approach in improving the safety and well being of consumers with mental health and mental retardation challenges, September 2004

15. Habte-Jesus, et. al. Capacity Building Initiative for HIV Primary Care Services with a focus on Infrastructure development via improved Governance, MIS/Financial System and Continuous Quality Improvement System, April 2005.

16. Habte-Jesus, Belai, “Empowering civil societies series” - Shifting Paradigm of Global Good Governance, the changing role of stakeholders and advocates, Diaspora Dialogue IV, George Washington University Law School, May 2005- Chaired the conference as well as prepared key note address.

19. Habte-Jesus, Belai, Institutional Challenges of Good Governance, Globalization and Millennium Development Goals in 21st Century Transitional Economies, the experience of the Horn and Ethiopia. Ethiopia: Beyond the Current Crisis Symposium at Washington Times Building, Wednesday, 14 December 2005: 15:00-18:00 Hrs organized by Voice of the Patriots, Voice of Reason, United Press International, Ambassadors for Peace Program& World Media Association.